Anxiety is hard to explain.

It’s even harder to live with.

And it’s really freakin’ tough to be someone who suffers from it

-- the same someone who can’t [adequately] explain it to those that don’t.

Being generally uptight, socially awkward and fearful, it’s not pleasant.

It’s even harder to be an overall life-loving person and try to hide your all-encompassing worry.

For being a vocal optimist, I’m quite the internal pessimist -- not always, no, but with many things -- and I’ve got to imagine, that’s the case for a lot of folks.

That we wear happy well and that we exude some form of "put-togetherness" or "zen," but that beneath our delightful front we are a ball of unease attached to a string of of apprehension and we kick that 'ish around with us

everywhere.
we.
go.

And it makes us feel inadequate. 'Cause we wanna be perfect or closer to it like so many. And we wanna be fun and light-hearted and

easy.
to.
be.
around.

Like I said, anxiety is hard to explain, and if you're not someone who suffers from it in any of its very many forms, my description of it probably sounds like whining and grouch business and something those that suffer from should just "deal with" and "get over."

But please know that every human on this freakin' planet who deals with anxiety

-- in its lighter forms or its heavier ones --

doesn't want to and tries damn hard not to.

Please don't tell a person with anxiety to "chill out," because we're already frozen and paralyzed by our nerves and life's general suspense.

Do you know you need to tell a loved one or a friend or a coworker who presents with nervous energy?

1) That you love being around them.

2) That's its just fine to be a conundrum of human and that we all are.

3) AND that they wear their "crazy" well, but that, really, they aren't crazy at all.

It’s as easy as 1…2…3.

You know,

I'm someone who's pretty much in a constant state of worry,

but the one thing I’ve stopped worrying about is that I'm "lesser" than anyone because of it.

And,

in fact,

I've come to believe that those of us with a little extra angst, well, we often find a unique way to channel it for the betterment of the lot of us.